A pretrial detention hearing for Han Hakja, president of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (Unification Church), who is suspected of lobbying the Yoon Suk Yeol administration on various Unification Church-related issues, will be held next week.
Han Hakja, president of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (Unification Church), who had refused to appear three times at the special prosecutor's summons, is attending the office of Special Prosecutor Kim Gunhee set up at the KT Gwanghwamun Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 17th. Photo by Kang Jinhyung
According to the legal community on September 18, Judge Jeong Jaeuk, the judge in charge of warrants at the Seoul Central District Court, will hold a pretrial detention hearing for President Han at 1:30 p.m. on the 22nd. At 4:00 p.m. on the same day, a hearing will also be held for Jeong, Han's former chief of staff.
The special prosecutor's team led by Min Joonggi, which has been investigating allegations related to First Lady Kim Gunhee, requested arrest warrants for both Han and Jeong on this day.
The charges listed in the warrant include violations of the Political Funds Act, violations of the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act, instigation of evidence destruction, and occupational embezzlement. This is the first time Han has faced the possibility of pretrial detention since she became president in September 2012.
Han is suspected of conspiring with Yoon, the former worldwide headquarters director of the Unification Church, to deliver 100 million won in political funds to Kwon Seongdong, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, in January 2022, while requesting support for the Unification Church from the Yoon Suk Yeol administration. Jeong, for whom an arrest warrant was also requested, is known as the deputy director of Cheonmuwon, the highest administrative body of the Unification Church, and Han's chief of staff, and faces the same charges as Han.
The special prosecutor also suspects that Han, in collusion with Yoon and others, gave luxury gifts worth a total of 83 million won to First Lady Kim Gunhee while lobbying her on church matters, and that church funds were used to purchase these gifts.
It is reported that Han largely denied the allegations during a nearly 9.5-hour interrogation the previous day. The special prosecutor's team is said to have immediately requested arrest warrants, citing a high risk of evidence destruction. Han's conduct-such as refusing to comply with three previous summonses and only appearing voluntarily after lawmaker Kwon was detained-also appears to have been taken into account.
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